Watches Of Knightsbridge September 2016 Sale

Another sale from this specialized auction house. With 18% commission plus a 3.6 % “Internet Charge”. Remember the seller is charged 12%.

So taking the first watch as an example, the sale was bid to £7400. The seller is charged 12% (probably along with some other charges, but lets agree on 12%). So the owner gets £6512. The buyer pays £8998.40, or £9264 if he bid online. So the buyer pays a minimum of £2486.40 more than the seller receives (about 72% of the total price paid goes to the seller). This auction house is actually slightly cheaper than others.

Plenty of Speedmasters in this sale, and the post Brexit GBP to USD exchange rate might tempt the ex colonies to come back into the market with their powerful dollars.

None of the descriptions give a serial number, and all of the photos fall short of being able to give a true impression of the watch. This sale needs to be viewed. In fact it is a great opportunity to see several Speedmasters in one place, something that has not presented itself for a while.

Lot 193 2998-2 Estimate GBP 6500 – 7500

(Sold For £7400 bid, $11800 incl premium approx)

This watch clearly had some sort of restoration perhaps in the 1970’s going by the bracelet date. The dial, handset and bezel are all too late for a 2998-2. (they appear to be from a 105.003, and so have some value in themselves). The price reflects this and in these days of heady prices for a 2998 reaching $25,000 for black dials and $50,000 for tropicals then this might be cheap enough to attract a bargain hunter. Just remember when the tide turns, this watch will be worth only the sum of its parts. It needs a dial, bezel and hands to be a correct 2998, but of course it will never be original. As I have not seen inside, we cannot comment on the movement, neither its state nor the serial.

Lot 194 145.022 (1989) Estimate GBP 6000-7000

(Sold for Bid £6000, $9,600 incl premium approx)

This watch is later than the references covered in this site, but I include it for interest. I do wonder if it can reach the estimate, for what is a fairly standard watch. I think the case has been polished, as the engraving on the side is usually deeper.

Lot 195 105.003-64 Estimate GBP 4500-5500

(Sold for Bid £5200, $8,300 incl premium approx)

This is a harsh photo, which does not allow any charm to show through, however I believe it is there. The dial is correct, close T SWISS MADE T. It exhibits the kind of wobbly lume I have seen many times in this reference. I don’t like it, but I feel it is original. The bezel is way too late, and this watch needs inspection to ascertain the state of the hands. I doubt it is a good watch as the estimate is low, compared to the watches sold in Bonhams in the summer which achieved close to GBP 10,000 each. This watch deserves viewing in the metal. You never know.

Lot 196 105.003-65 Estimate GBP 4000-6000

(Sold for Bid £6600, $10,500 incl premium approx)

This watch is part of a two watch lot, from the same owner with some history. (The other watch is a low value seamaster and irrelevant to our calculations). In spite of the history, this watch is not as original as I would like or the history might suggest. The hands are possibly superluminova, and later service replacements, the chrono hand being sqaure ended,

The bezel is a DO90, but a terrible one. The dial lume is very messy and not attractive.

The photos are again very hard to interpret, but I think this dial is a little tropical, though not a valuable one, as the colour appears “dry” to me. Again this needs to be viewed and with luck it is better in hand than in the catalog.

Lot 197 105.012-66CB Estimate GBP 4500-5500

(Sold for Bid £6200, $9,900 incl premium approx)

This is a good looking watch. It is let down slightly by the inconsistent plots, but the dial body is good and the hands are correct and match the patina. The bezel is superb.

We can just make out the fact lines on the lugs. Pushers are correct short ones, and they look original.

The watch seems to be original and correct and I expect this to sell strongly.

The lower subdial is creeping – but I never buy a watch from a sale without expecting it to need servicing.

Lot 198 145.012-68 Estimate GBP 3000-3500

(Sold for Bid £4500, $7100 incl premium approx – I have not included the +3.6% online charge, as it is unlcear where to add it in)

The second -68 to come up in auction in as many months. These are quite rare, most we see are the -67. Bezel is a replacement, (correct for the early 1970’s). The chrono hand is a drop end, which is unusual as being a late 145.012 I would have expected a square end, though we do see drop ends on the 145.022-68 as well. I think they are all correct. The dial on this watch is correct and attractive. It is a good looking watch and I expect this to sell well also. The incorrect bezel will hold back the price….well it ought to!

Lot 199 145.022-71 Estimate GBP 2000-2500

(Sold for Bid £2000, $3,200 incl premium approx)

The last of the stepped dials, the -71 represents an excellent opportunity to acquire a vintage Speedmaster for a decent price. This watch seems honest and correct, if a little tired. The paint has come off the hands at the centre, indicating a lot of removal and replacement. So this suggests to me that it has been worked on more than once. The dial plots are dirty. The bezel is correct, slightly worn. This watch needs inspecting to be sure, but I like it for what it is.

Lot 200 145.022-74 Estimate GBP 2000-2500

(Sold for Bid £2200, $3,500 incl premium approx)

Another nice looking watch. this lacks the step in the dial although the photos seem to show one. These steps can be terribly difficult to see in photos. I am pretty sure this has no step. the bezel is correct, and has gone grey. the hands in this watch are in better condition to the previous one. Again, subject to seeing it in hand, I like this watch.

This sale is definitely worth viewing. Bricks and Mortar auctions are always more expensive than the internet market, but the premiums put off sellers. What I hope to find in auction rooms are watches that dont show up in the internet, and the opportunity to hold many watches at the same time.

While this auction does not have anything special, it does have watches that have not been available on Ebay or Forum sales for a while.